Digital (Library Services) and (Digital Library) Services

Jeffrey Pomerantz

Abstract

This paper is an exploration of digital library services, in both possible senses: services provided digitally by physical libraries, and services provided by digital libraries. Services, regardless of the environment in which they are provided, break down into services performed on materials (technical services) and services provided to individual users and communities of users (public services). Both traditional and new services are discussed as a means for exploring the question of what a library service is. Value is proposed as the concept unifying all library services. Libraries are called upon to experiment with providing new services, and to study users’ perceptions of value and methods of value creation.